Quotes of All Topics . Occasions . Authors
I think acting is therapeutic for me.
School was very difficult. I was conscious of how I looked.
I spent my life figuring out ways to make the room OK with me.
A lot of us have done bullying and didn't even realize we did it.
I come alive when there is a chance to learn or do something different.
The greatest acting really is spoken without words, or at least I like to think that.
I don't think I've ever done a real mini-series, but I love doing film first and foremost.
To have someone inspire you to be who you are and be unapologetic about it, it's beautiful.
I think there's always an adjustment when somebody new is runnings things, from the top down.
Here's the thing: I had never been to Boston, my whole life. Probably because I'm a Yankee fan.
I would absolutely love to do another Baz Luhrmann film, especially a 'Moulin Rouge' type picture.
When I'm acting and I have to remember my lines and put my mind in concert with my body, I don't tic.
There's moments when you have to make a split-second decision that will form you for the rest of your life.
I think that the reason I became an actor, probably, underneath it, was that I spent my life acting normal.
I want to go play a villain or an action hero or a nice, light, romantic comedy or something. That would be good.
The great thing about Showtime is that they really give us leeway and the range to explore the real dark side of stuff.
Auditioning is one of the most nerve-racking things you could ever do, but you have to be so focused that you don't tic.
A lot of talented people have some quirks, y'know? And bless them for that. I'd rather have Tourette's than be someone boring.
Tourette's is involuntary in that it is impossible not to do. And it's torture to know what you're doing and not be able to stop it.
With Tourette's, there's this element of vulnerability and compassion and empathy that you innately possess because of the affliction.
I had this tic where I touch my mouth to my knee, and I'm always screwing up my back. I've had two shoulder surgeries. My doctor just smiles and laughs at me.
It's challenging to take on something else that is not you and make it very real and have others be able to associate with it. It's wonderful to provoke thought.
I've have a number of violent tics. With Tourette syndrome, there's not just compulsive actions, but compulsive thoughts as well. That used to scare my mother a lot.
There are networks and executives who are willing to take risks on vastly different material, and as an actor, there are some really juicy roles to sink your teeth into.
In the years when teenagers really need to be connected to somebody, they aren't; especially in small towns where kids are bored and look for something to get them going.
I'm a morning "spinner." That's usually when my brain is thinking too much and I don't necessarily see things positively. So I sit myself down and remember that I'm making it up.
I've seen a shift in general about the literacy of the public to what Tourette's is. And that's a testament to local kids and parents having the courage to share their experience.
Playground of Dreams supports kids in discovering and achieving their own magnificence, that unique quality that only they have, fostering it, watering it, and watching it sprout!
My biggest life lesson is that the past is the past. I do my best not to bring history into my present. It ain't ever easy, but it usually creates more opportunity for joyful experiences.
I would love to do a Fred Astaire/Gene Kelly type movie musical - a fun, song and dance, romantic comedy. Or, even just play the lead in one of those broad comedies - that would just be fantastic.
I don't know if I ever realized, initially, that I didn't tic when I was so focused on my acting. I think it was after I had already done it a few years, when I went, 'Hey, interesting that this happens.'
I have been making hip-hop since I was a kid growing up in New York in the '80s and '90s. It's always been a hobby of mine - I've been making beats and writing songs for as long or longer than I've been acting.
People believe that if you can shut your Tourette's off for a period of time, then you can always shut it off. I try to explain to people that if I spent my whole life trying to control my tics, that's all I would have time for.
I do my best to allow myself to really feel it [emotional pain]. Cry. Get all in it. Really experience my experience so that I may move through it. And talk about it. I try not to let anything get brushed over and swept under the rug.
Tourette's has always been a tough one for many to digest because of its seeming irrationality: 'Why do you have to twitch or make noises? You seem normal, with no physical defects.' It's next to impossible to answer without living it.
Every moment in life can be interpreted as a risk, depending on our outlook - and level of obsessive- compulsive disorder! I do my best to depend on my gut. If you sit with a decision long enough, your gut/soul will tell you what path to take.
My first tic was to shake my head violently. I was in karate class, and I was shaking violently. All of a sudden, I just started to notice that the teacher was looking at me, and all the kids were wondering what I was doing. I suddenly felt really strange.
I feel like my soul yearns to experience something new at all times. That may be an encounter with a new place or persons or a song that plays and urges me to dance in a different way. I come alive when there is a chance to learn or do something different.
Acting is a stressful environment to put yourself into, and stress triggers Tourette's, but I think it's partly an outlet because when I'm acting, I'm putting my mind, body, and soul into something, and that's one of the times during the day when I don't tic.
I would ask everyone to remember, in any situation we are experiencing, that we can come from a place of fear or love. I would say, however uncomfortable it may be sometimes to get to that root, to please take that extra time and courage to come from a place of love.
One of my favorite movies is 'Some Like It Hot,' which isn't really a musical, but I'm just such a sucker for old movies. I wouldn't want to ever tarnish one of them, or do a spot-on remake, but just do something light like that where I get to glide across the floor. I would be a very happy camper.
Being with my family and loved ones makes me feel vulnerable. Speaking my truth and then being that in action. Leaving my comfort zone but knowing that risk is going to create something beautiful. I believe I have come to good terms with my vulnerability. I welcome it now, where I didn't in the past.
It's very important that we do show appreciation for those who go to work in raising awareness. You know, Tourette Syndrome is not well known. There's not a lot of government money and research in it. But people are dying inside every day because they're suffering with it, and I think word needs to get out.
When they [young people] believe they are the difference! That their voice matters and to use the incredible power each one of them has. I work with an amazing young man, Jaylen Arnold, who started a foundation and a movement to educate people about tolerance and to stop bullying when he was eight years old. He never ceases to inspire me.
If I can just accept it and tic when I want to and have my passion project - what I'm mentally, physically, emotionally invested in something - where you're fully focused, and your body parts and mind are all moving toward this one goal, you're focused, and you can shut it off, but only for a certain period of time. Then, you have to let loose.
I'm a morning "spinner." That's usually when my brain is thinking too much and I don't necessarily see things positively. So I sit myself down and remember that I'm making it up. I believe we are creating in every moment - making up our reality, so to speak - so when anything gets chaotic or I feel spun out, I remind myself that everything is an interpretation. I can look at it differently and make it work for me in a more positive light.